The national economy seems to be following Middle Tennessee’s lead, according to recently released data from the Labor Department.

For the past year or so, the midstate has been adding jobs and growing at a rate faster than the national economy.

“The Nashville area continues to be the hot spot for Tennessee’s economy,” said David Penn, director of the Business and Economic Research Center at MTSU.

While the local economy dimmed some in June, the national economy began to burn a little brighter.

Following the growth here, the national economy marked a sixth straight month of solid 200,000-plus job growth in July. This reinforces growing evidence that the U.S. economy is accelerating after five years of sluggish expansion.

Employers added 209,000 jobs last month. Though that was fewer than in the previous three months, the economy has now produced an average 244,000 jobs a month since February — the best six-month string in eight years.

The Labor Department’s jobs report Friday pointed to an economy that has bounced back with force after a grim start to the year and is expected to sustain its strength into 2015.

Economists generally expect it to grow at a 3 percent annual rate in the second half of this year after expanding 4 percent in the second quarter. Consumer spending is rising, manufacturing is expanding rapidly and auto sales are up.

These indicators suggest economic expansion is on the horizon.

Tennessee’s most recent jobless numbers aren’t as rosy as in past months, but overall indicators are better than they seem.

“Though single-family home construction is down from the previous month, payroll employment is 22,000 higher over the year, sales tax collections are growing fast, and the unemployment rate has dipped to less than 6 percent,” Penn said.

In Tennessee, the county unemployment rates for June 2014, released Thursday, showed the jobless rate increased in all 95 counties, according to the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development.

Davidson County had the state’s lowest major metropolitan rate in June at 6 percent, up from 5.2 in May. Rutherford County’s rate also slipped to 6 percent from 5 percent in May. The state rate for June was 6.6 percent, up from 6.4 in May.

Despite the setback, Davidson and surrounding counties are still outperforming the state on the year and the bright spot for the state’s economy, Penn said.

Tracking Tennessee’s recovery

Seasonally adjusted initial claims for Tennessee for Tennessee climbed again in June, rising to 5,106 claims per week. The increase pushed new claims slightly higher than the trend.

Permits issued for single-family home construction for Tennessee climbed from the previous month, rising 22 percent from a weak May performance. Over the year, single-family home permits are 16.9 percent higher. Total permits (single-family plus multi-family) are 9.5 percent higher over the year

State sales tax collections rose strongly in June after seasonal adjustment, gaining 2.4 percent from May and 5.5 percent over the year. Business-related tax collections declined substantially, however, causing total state tax collections to fall.